The Greatest Arsenal Jerseys of the 21st Century.
By Abraham Dein
I've always been fascinated by the football kit, particularly the one of my team: Arsenal FC. Playing in the greatest combination of colours, red and white, (almost) every year since Herbert Chapman injected the white into the jersey in 1933, I always look forward to the launch of the next season's strip.
I feel like kits are one of the best ways to look down memory lane. Whenever you look at a shirt, you associate it with a player or a magical moment and so, during this period of self-isolating, I think it's a good time to do exactly that. Naturally, I've compiled a list ranking every Arsenal kit Arsenal have had in the 21st century.
Why not just the Premier League from 1992 I hear you ask? Well, I wasn't alive then so I can't really associate them with players or moments so any ranking would have less value.
Anyway, let's kick off with some of the worst...
46. Away 17/18
I present to you the worst kit Arsenal have had in the 21st century. Fades hardly every look good on football shirts and this one is no exception - in fact it's awful.
Our terrible away form that season meant we mustered just 2 wins in this jersey, both of them coming in the Europa League against BATE Borisov and AC Milan. Bizarrely we played Östersund in this blue strip at home, losing 2-1.
45. Third 18/19
Playing in it more games than the actually quite nice dark-blue/purple away kit of the 2018/19 campaign, this minty monstrosity pretty much summed up the season for the Gunners. Luckily, there aren't many good memories to look back on with this kit.
44. Third 14/15
Now Puma's attempt at mixing the two shades of blue. This one is worse because they decided to pile on a touch of lime green.
Its only memorable game is the 2-1 victory at Old Trafford in the quarter final of the FA Cup 2015, courtesy of Nacho Monreal and Danny Welbeck.
...Next!
43. Away 11/12
Despite Robin van Persie having the season of his career in this jersey, it didn't stop the two shades of blue clashing horribly diagonally across the shirt. It just looks cheap.
Worse, Nike had the audacity to get Thierry Henry to wear this on his return to Arsenal. This was also the kit we wore during the 8-2 thrashing by United.
42. Third 15/16
I'm not quite sure what Puma were thinking with this one. Three random-coloured strips at the bottom of a black shirt.
If you forgot about this one, I don't blame you. We hardly played in it, and from those games, I can't remember anything interesting.
Totally forgettable.
41. Third 16/17
When this kit came out in the summer of 2016, it got a largely positive response, but it hasn't aged well. The florescent green may have put-off the Ludogorets defence for Özil's wondergoal in the Champions League group stage, but I am not really a fan.
40. Home 18/19
Despite plenty of good memories in the worst-ranked home strip on this list, such as the 4-2 win over Spurs or Aubameyang and Lacazette's blossoming relationship, Puma's final attempt at getting Arsenal right was not great. The pink bands on the sleeves turn this kit from bog-standard to rubbish. The white at the top that sinks to the top of the chest didn't help either.
In this kit we also had to witness the dismal performance in the Europa League final against Chelsea following the crumble in the final stretch of the season and a failure to get Top 4.
39. Away 12/13
Third 13/14
I always love horizontal stripes on kits, and I enjoy Nike's use of black and purple with an Arsenal-Red trim. Not amazing but not half bad.
You just remember the Podolski thunderbolts and Giroud missing sitters.
38. Third 17/18
The cup away kit in our first season in the Europa League. It's a good choice for a third kit, with a nice pink trim, but I've never been a massive fan of Arsenal in black. Not many good moments in it to write about either.
Olivier Giroud's 100th goal for the Gunners against BATE Borisiov? Or maybe the 5-2 against Everton? Just general mediocrity.
37. Third 00-02
This one is actually quite nice with a lovely gold trim. But it ranks so low because we hardly played in it over two years, but the players who did were immense.
Shame. A forgotten gem.
36. Home 08-10
It got a good response when it came out, and some of the players who wore the shirt almost made up for its many imperfections.
Nike were trying to echo the kits at the turn of the Millenium with the white down the side and thick black trim. However, the red sleeves are not very Arsenal. Sorry Cesc.
35. Away 02/03
This was a bold move by Nike, but this kit has not aged well at all. The red trim is nice but the seizure-inducing front is rather horrible. However, these major problems have been forgotten by fans because the players were able to pull it of - well that Arsenal team could have pulled anything off really.
The worst that team got was Francis Jeffers.
Imagine Gabriel Paulista, Iwobi or Mustafi in that shirt!
34. Home 16/17
I don't particularly like this one. Even our FA Cup success that year doesn't make up for the horrible and unnecessary dark red stripe down the middle. The collar is a mess and there are random areas of white down the side.
We also finished outside the top 4 for the first time in 21 years that season.
33. Home 15/16
The standard, run-of-the mill Arsenal shirt. The collar doesn't quite work, but nothing particularly inoffensive. This was the season Leicester City won the league and we leapfrogged Spurs on the last game of the season to finish second. That was the year we stood a big chance of winning the league.
Mediocre in every way.
32. Third 08/09
The weaker of the two white shirts in this list. Whilst it is very smart with a faint grey linear pattern, it didn't get worn much.
Many people don't like Arsenal in white because it looks like Tottenham. I say that's utter nonsense. Because the thing that didn't look like Tottenham was the football played in it.
31. Home 17/18
Similar to the 16/17 home shirt, this is a bog-standard Arsenal home shirt and the collar is slightly better. But again, this was a subpar season, finishing outside the Top 4 for a second year running.
Best moments include Giroud's winner against Leicester in the 4-3 thriller in the first game of the season and beating Spurs 2-0 - but not much else.
We actually reached League cup final that season? I've already forgotten about it.
30. Away 18/19
Underrated kit. I really like the deep purple complementing the dark blue.
Unfortunately it was hardly played in, but there were some good memories in it: the Ramsey team goal against Fulham, or the Aubameyang hattrick against Valencia in the 5-2 Europa League semi-final.
Also, the shorts are a thing of beauty.
29. Away 16/17
I do love a yellow Arsenal shirt, but the dark grey as the secondary colour is the weakest out of the three (blue and marroon).
Not many great moments in this kit, the only one that stands out is the 5-1 thrashing of West Ham with an Alexis Sánchez hattrick or when we beat Basel 2-0 at the Emirates.
28. Away 99-01
See above. You can clearly see the inspiration for its 16/17 counterpart.
Played with both SEGA and Dreamcast as the shirt sponsor, it lasted two seasons.
However, bizarrely for a team of that quality, in neither season was there any silverware. That's why it comes at middle of the list
27. Third 07/08
A beautiful third kit that complimented the cloudy white away and home strip perfectly, all of them having a wonderful gold trim.
Unfortunately, as like most third strips, it was scarcely played in, pushing it down the ranks.
I'd like to see Adidas's take on it at some point.
26. Away 04/05
Third 05-07
As you can probably tell by now, I'm not the biggest fan of Arsenal in blue but I do like this one. The gold trim is very lovely but there is nothing much to write home about. Yet, this post-Invincible team made this jersey good.
25. Home 14/15
Puma's first attempt at the Arsenal red-and-white and it works. Alexis took the Premier League by storm in it, and it was a joy to see his footballing relationship with Özil bloom as well.
The problem is we also were able to see a lot more of the players than we asked for since it was incredibly tight.
24. Away 20/21
Probably the weakest of the modern Adidas ones so far.
On first viewing, Arsenal's away shirt for this season looked like every player had had a nosebleed, whereas it was intended to reflect marble walls of Highbury.
However, harking back to the 07/08 white shirt with maroon shorts, I really like this one, although I would have preferred a maroon collar rather than a white one.
A nice win over Liverpool in the Community Shield made me like it even better.
23. Away 09/10
Third 10/11
A very smart blue jersey that works really nicely with subtle lines down the front like the white third strip of the 09/10 season.
Unfortunately the most vivid memory I have of it was Ryan Shawcross fracturing Ramsey's leg against Stoke when we were 1-0 down, with Fabregas then cultivating the team to a 3-1 victory.
22. Away 10/11
Third 11-13
A jersey used in three seasons in slightly different versions, but I'm counting it as 1.
I remember the rises of both Jack Wilshere and Santi Cazorla in it. Taking inspiration from Herbet Chapman's maroon shirts, this strip screamed Arsenal and everyone loved it.
21. Third 19/20
Arguably the weakest of the 19/20 series, but that's not saying much. Adidas' first attempt at Arsenal in the 21st century has been very popular, and quite right too!
A rich dark blue is contrasted perfectly by the yellow trim.
Its downfall? It was hardly been played in, which is not that bad seeing as the alternative is the yellow.
19. Away 15/16
An incredibly underrated shirt, inspired by the the 01/02 away one. The pattern on gold just about works, but I'm not so sure about the triangle below the collar. Other than that, it's pretty spectacular.
Beating Leicester 5-2 was the highlight, with another Alexis hattrick, but there were also the Southampton 4-0s that encapsulated the reasons why we didn't win that year. The 15/16 season could have become legendary, taking this beautiful golden strip with it.
20. Third 20/21
With a tie-die pattern on a navy blue with a rose-gold trim, this is another banger from Adidas.
This pips the blue third kit from the year before just because of the textured blue.
18. Home 12-14
The Aaron Ramsey kit. It is looking like the last time we'll wear a home strip for two seasons thanks to the evil clutches of consumerism.
Most people were not a fan back in the summer of 2012 of the dark blue trim, with many suggesting that the sleeves looked like the Dutch flag, a vain attempt to get RVP to stay.
However, we broke our trophy drought in it, with a team that could have also won the league that season if Giroud hadn't decided to stop scoring in the second half of the campaign.
17. Home 06-08
The gold trim on the first shirt worn at the Emirates is delightful. It's a classic and totally inoffensive design.
However it was the first kit in a gradually crumbling Arsenal side, and no silverware to make it go down in history.
16. Home 11/12
Unlike its away counterpart, our 125th anniversary shirt was simple but fantastic nonetheless. With a slight alteration to the badge, it was another shirt that oozed our class and history.
Moments in it include: the first of the 5-2s over Sp*rs and Thierry Henry's legendary winner against Leeds on his return.
15. Away 14/15
Puma's first away colours were the Arsenal yellow and blue. No wonder then in the FA Cup final when we played in it, Wembley gave us yellow and blue scarfs instead.
Another great moment was beating City away 2-0 with the greatest Santi Cazorla performance of his career.
The collar is a bit too low for me and the square bit at the top of the shirt doesn't work, otherwise a great kit.
14. Home 00-02
Everything about this kit works, and it's helped by the team that wore it. From the collar to the black trim, to Freddie's red hair.
This was Arsène Wenger's Arsenal.
13. Away 13/14
The last of Nike's attempts at the Arsenal away shirt and it was beautiful, with the ]lighter blue collar and trim heavily inspired by the Invincible away shirt.
The signing of Mesut Özil and the emergence of Aaron Ramsey propelled Arsenal to first by December. This would have been the perfect away kit for our first League win since the 03/04. Oh what could have been.
12. Home 19/20
I don't think I've ever seen a more perfect Arsenal shirt. The problem is, last season I don't think I'd ever seen a more imperfect Arsenal.
Adidas' first take on the red and white after a few decades certainly didn't disappoint. It's very simple but with touches of class, like the collar and red trim on the sleeves.
11. Away 05-07
Whilst it's a bit boring, and you already know my thoughts on the dark grey with yellow, some of the players who played in this were simply breathtaking.
Whilst we lost against Barcelona wearing it in the Champions League final, we still got Henry's goal at the Bernabeu to look back on.
10. Home 20/21
Football jerseys are becoming increasingly fashionable and this year's take on the red and white is a beautiful deep red pattern, a nod to some of the old Highbury designs.
It is already iconic thanks to Aubameyang's heroics in the FA Cup Final and I can see it being a 'retro' shirt in decades to come.
9. Away 07/08
This was a fabulous shirt. The first time Arsenal had ever played in white. Not only does it have the maroon shorts and collar and the golden trim, but if you look closely there's some beautiful subtle inscriptions on the white.
The two most memorable moments must be the Walcott full-length run against Liverpool in the Champions League to set up Adebayor, and of course Fabregas' 30-yard screamer in the 2-0 victory over AC Milan.
8. Home 05/06
For the final season at Highbury, Nike decided to sandwich the red-and-white Arsenal with the claret strip we worein 1913.
And it worked.
It also helped that the players who played in it were some of the best ever to play for this club.
Yet with no silverware and a fourth-placed finish, this kit does not get into the Top 5.
7. Home 10/11
Inspired by the 1970 double winning shirt, it's a shame we weren't able to channel any of that spirit into the season. However, it's fabulously simple and simply fantastic.
A beautiful thick white round neck and a thick red trim on the sleeve.
Naturally, the most memorable moment has to be THAT 2-1 win over arguably the greatest Barcelona side ever, with the 19-year-old Jack Wilshere showing Xavi and Andrés Iniesta how to play football. If it weren't for the disgraceful RVP sending off in the away leg, that match could have been even more legendary.
6. Away 01/02
Third 02/03
Wiltooooord!
When gold works, it's beautiful. And what could have been better than playing in it as we beat United at their place to win the league, and eventually the double!
Respectably copied in the 14/15 season, but you can't beat the classic.
5. Away 08/09
Third 09/10
This jersey is oddly stunning, inspired by the kit we won the league in at Anfield in 1989. The plain golden yellow shirt with the dark blue sleeves and shorts, complemented by a red trim is just so perfect.
Its most iconic moment has to be the Arshavin quadruple at Anfield.
This one sort of goes under the radar but I adore it.
4. Home 04/05
Not too different from the Invincible kit, the 04/05 home strip, with its added golden trim, is fabulous.
It also helps that we won the FA Cup in it too!
3. Away 19/20
Inspired by bruised banana strip of the 90s, I adore this modern take on it.
This was Adidas' fist attempt at the Arsenal yellow and blue since 1994 and they created an absolute banger.
A beautiful zigzag design complemented with a dark blue trim and shorts.
We won the FA Cup that season, with the shirt being played in many times on the road to Wembley.
2. Away 03/04
Third 04/05
Home: Red and white. Away: Yellow and blue.
Arsenal fans telling you that they didn't lose a single game in the 03/04 campaign.
= Arsenal Football Club.
1. Home 02-04
Wasn't it clear from the start that the Invincible home shirt would be the winner?
But then again, it's all about the journey down memory lane, and where better to finish than the season during which Arsenal won 26, drew 12 and lost exactly 0.
It's a fairly undramatic Arsenal shirt, but then it didn't need to be. The drama happened on the field.
This is quite literally the perfect Arsenal shirt.
